Friday, May 3rd

(Andre’s POV)
It’s been exactly three weeks since the epic beat down my brother has, against all odds, survived. I cried for the second time in just a few days when Dr. Carter could immediately tell that his wolf had gone dormant. First thing I asked was if he was dead as all werewolves know that without their wolf they will not survive. He reassuringly emphasized that his wolf was not dead but that he had given everything he had to keep Cole alive and had I not stepped in and stopped the brutal beating that he most certainly would have died.
True to his word, Julian had a helicopter on the helipad of Red General within an hour of my call. Once Dr. Carter established appropriate protective care to ensure he stayed alive; he was immediately flown to West Highland under the alias of Colton Alexander Carter. When I asked Dr. Carter where the name came from he explained that he had a son born the same year as Cole but he had died at five years old in a tragic accident on Alpha Redmen’s property. As a result, Charles established a trust in Colton’s name that he could use for anyone needing care that didn’t have enough in their account. Over the years he had run into many wolves who wanted to help Cole escape but understood that helping within the site of Charles would result in harm coming to them. Alex started proposing to those wolves that donating some of the money leftover from their medical account would be a big help. Many have donated half of their leftovers to the account over the last fifteen years. Giving Cole Colton’s identity will allow him to have the money needed for him to travel the underground until he gets to Alpha Demetri. At least that’s the plan.
He stayed at West Highland for a week. Every test imaginable was run over the first three days. The list of injuries caused over the week and a half that Kris and Charles had him floored me and I found myself visiting Alpha Julian’s rage room multiple times over those three days as results came back. The only way I kept any resemblance of sanity was the presence of my mate, Kiara. CAT scan was run first as internal bleeding was a known potential from the sheer amount of bruising and swelling that was visible over every piece of his body. Bleeding and swelling in his brain were the biggest concerns but they also found major bruising to his liver, bladder, kidneys and intestines. There was talk about him needing surgery to remove his fractured spleen and reduce the pressure building in his brain but both resolved enough to avoid it within twenty-four hours.
The next shocker was the number of breaks and dislocations they found. Multiple fractures to his head, face, neck, and ribs were found. The only good news is that the fractures to his neck didn’t compromise his spinal cord so he’s not paralyzed from the breaks and none of the fractures are unstable. Once again, he managed to avoid surgery.
Both of his shoulders and one wrist were dislocated to varying degrees. They were manipulated back to where they belonged and splints were applied to keep them in place. His blood pressure and blood sugar were both very low prompting saline laced with glucose, vitamins and minerals to constantly be given through two IV sites.
I rode with Cole to Red General. Even though it made sense it still pissed me off that I couldn’t go in the helicopter with him. My inability to join him in the chopper worked to his benefit as I had no idea that he had linked with his beta. I ran into Jamie and Jon as I was exiting Red General. He told me what Cole wanted; to trust me with a backpack he insisted on keeping with him. I didn’t ask any questions, just simply took it and kept it safely with me.
I ended up changing my plans for Amos and Max to stay at the hotel just inside White Moon’s territory. Alpha Julian insisted on hosting the three of us for the night before Amos and Max made their way to White Ridge. I stayed with Cole until he was stable enough to travel by ambulance two hours to Ridge General. I’ve seldom left his side outside of the basic needs of eating, showering and bathroom breaks. As much as I know he fears me I don’t want him to wake up alone.
I was grateful when Alpha Julian made his way here last week. Regular visits to the hospital from Julian and Kiara have really cheered the place up as they brought him flowers and ‘get well’ balloons. I’m fighting sleep as the sounds of light whimpers startle me to attention. Cole has been eerily quiet since he lost consciousness before we ever got him into the ambulance. Standing quickly, it only takes a moment to be by his side.
“Hey, brother. Can you hear me?”
I keep my tone joyful but my volume just above a whisper. His eyes are closed as he attempts to move his arms, yelping with the pain it produces. I quickly stop his movements with a gentle hand on top of his, sitting on the bed, I use the other hand to gently caress his temple hoping to calm him.
“Be still Cole. Open your eyes. I promise I’ll get the doctor in here to help with your pain.”
Slowly he tries his eyes, wary of what he might see.
“Hey there brother. It’s okay to be here.”
I try to reassure him as his gaze is obviously fearful as he looks around the room.
“I’m going to buzz for the nurse. I need to let them know you’re awake.”
I explain as I reach behind his head. He stifles several yelps even though pushing the call button doesn’t need me to touch him but I do make certain to move it away from his head.
“May I help you?” The nurse's voice comes over the speaker.
“Good evening. Colton has woken up. He seems to be in a good amount of pain. Can you check his chart for his next doses of pain medication?” I request politely.
“Yes sir. Not a problem.”
“Thank you.”
She gets off the speaker leaving Cole a struggling mess. Dr. Moore anticipated that he may wake up to a nasty migraine as he’s already showing signs of not tolerating sound or light.
“Be still baby brother. I’m just going to tone down the light in this room. Do you think you can talk?”
I know I’m asking a lot after a three week coma but after complete silence from him I’m dying to hear anything.
“Where… am… I?” He starts slowly.
“You’re at Ridge General Hospital.” I answer without elaborating.
“What… happened?”
I pause for several seconds, uncertain how best to start explaining what little I know of what happened.
“Who.. am… I?” He whispers before I can answer the previous question.
“Who are you?”
I repeat, stopping what I’m doing to look at him. He nods slowly as he takes in the surroundings of his room.
“Who are you?”
He asks yet another question before I can get over the shock of the other two.
“You are Colton Alexander Carter and he is your brother, Andre.”
The familiar voice of Dr. Moore walks into the room followed closely by a nurse.
“How are you feeling, Colton?”
“Scared, confused.” He keeps it simple.
“Andre asked for some pain medication for you. How’s your pain level?”
He shakes his head but refuses to speak.
“Would you like to sit up?”
He stays silent as he watches Andrew approach his bed but it’s easy to tell he’s uncomfortable lying flat. He pulls away from the doctor as he reaches over to the railing of the bed,slowly lifting the head to a 45 degree angle. Andrew sits on the side of the bed, taking Cole’s hands in his as the nurse attaches a syringe to the IV port.
“No.” He cries quietly while moving his leg away from the nurse.
“Lots of patience, Erin. Now that he’s awake you need to take it slow.”
“Yes sir.”
“Please.” Cole whines again as he tries to draw his leg away.
“It’s okay. It will help your pain. The main side effect is feeling sleepy. Sit back. It’s okay to relax with us.”
He finally relents, laying back against the raised bed. He watches silently as the nurse moves around him, checking on anything that needs to be changed.
“What happened to me? Why am I here?”
His voice is a bit more steady now that he realizes he’s not in danger.
“You were in a battle for a week or more. Your wolf gave everything he had to keep you alive until Andre could get to you. With his and your sister, Ashley’s help, they were able to get you to two different hospitals before you came here. You’ve been in a coma for three weeks. It’s nice to see you awake again.”
“Wolf? Humans don’t own wolves. How could a wolf give me anything?”
His voice is starting to panic as the generic explanation of what happened is given.
“Cole, you’re a werewolf.”
Dr. Moore tries to explain gently but Cole can do nothing but shake his head.
“Werewolves aren’t real.” He finally manages to get something out despite his shock.
“I’m sorry. I should have eased you into that.”
“Why don’t I remember?”
He’s starting to panic even though he remains in his bed.
“I believe the trauma of the battle has resulted in dissociative amnesia. When your wolf fell dormant he took a lot of memories with him. While you will have normal functioning and retain new memories, memories of who you are and what you went through will likely remain dormant until he awakens.”
“When will that be?”
He sounds almost sad despite not believing he has one.
“I don’t know.” Andrew answers with a slow shake of his head. “It could be hours, days, weeks; no one is certain how dissociative amnesia works in a werewolf, they just know that the wolf half is key to a lot of your memories.”
It’s easy to tell that the medication is starting to kick in as he struggles to keep his eyes open.
“We will talk again soon. For now it’s best to rest. Alpha Demetri will be thrilled to hear that you’ve made such progress.”